Login

Navigation

Knowledge is Power � and Power Corrupts
The Book of Eli: History�s Fate Depends on One Man

In the year 2043 a massive world war has left earth in shambles. Goods that were once available in abundance are now scarce; money is non-existent, and bartering for even the simplest items is common practice. The few youths who managed to survive these apocalyptic catastrophes are the first of an especially deprived, illiterate, and completely unskilled generation. Most have turned to gangs and crime for sustenance, and local thugs for spiritual guidance.

Publication date: November 2, 2011

Knowledge is Power � and Power Corrupts
The Book of Eli: History�s Fate Depends on One Man

In the year 2043 a massive world war has left earth in shambles. Goods that were once available in abundance are now scarce; money is non-existent, and bartering for even the simplest items is common practice. The few youths who managed to survive these apocalyptic catastrophes are the first of an especially deprived, illiterate, and completely unskilled generation. Most have turned to gangs and crime for sustenance, and local thugs for spiritual guidance.

The few educated men who remain use their knowledge for evil. There is one exception to this rule however: a strangely righteous and faithful man known only as Eli (Denzel Washington). For the past 30 years Eli has walked on foot from America�s east coast determined to reach its west. More specifically, he intends to reach the notorious Alcatraz prison in San Francisco.

As he travels he faces nonstop opposition, yet miraculously remains unharmed. Whether genuine or delusional, Eli has been commanded by an unidentified source to protect the sole copy of a mysterious text. This is no easy task, especially since less honorable individuals are desperate to obtain the book as well. One of Eli�s primary foes is Carnegie (Gary Oldman), a man of comparable intellectual capacity. Carnegie is initially impressed by Eli�s fighting abilities and attempts to recruit him as member of his gang. Eli refuses however, realizing his greater calling and moral incompatibility with the hooligan, whose source of income includes prostituting his own daughter, Solara (Mila Kunis) among other vices.

When Carnegie coincidentally learns about Eli�s holy text through Solara and his blind wife, Claudia (Jennifer Beals), the traveler�s refusal becomes completely unacceptable. Before Carnegie can apprehend Eli, however, he flees; unbeknownst to both men Solara, intrigued by the strange visitor, follows. The hoodlum�s fascination with the document lies in its ability to entrance those who believe in it. While ideally this would lead to the formation of a just society, Carnegie intends to manipulate others with it for his own evil purposes. What ensues is a fantastically choreographed game of cat and mouse in which neither man refuses to lose.

The Book of Eli was granted a budget of $80 million, and managed to return nearly double that amount at $157 million. The picture�s soundtrack features the soulful sounds of Al Green and Anita Ward�s disco classic Ring my Bell.